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Penguins Take to the Ice to Remember 9/11

by
Staff Writer
/ Pittsburgh Penguins

Washington, DC—Before the 2009 Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins meet with President Obama at the White House on September 10, they will meet with another group, this one on the ice. Several members of the team will visit the Fort Dupont Ice Hockey Club, the oldest minority youth hockey program in the country, to offer a hockey clinic to the young players. A group from Pittsburgh's Hockey in the Hood program will join the Fort Dupont Ice Hockey Club in Washington, DC for the event. The clinic is a central component of the National Hockey League’s partnership with United We Serve, the initiative established by President Obama to challenge all Americans to engage in sustained, meaningful community service.

The clinic is one of hundreds of service events taken place in conjunction with the September 11 Day of Service and Remembrance, which was established by the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act to encourage all Americans to participate in service as a way to remember the victims and heroes of the 2001 terrorist attacks.

“We applaud the Pittsburgh Penguins and the National Hockey League for answering the President’s call to service," said Nicola Goren, Acting CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service, which was charged by Congress to promote the 9/11 day of service in conjunction with community groups nationwide. “Their service reminds us that no matter where you are in life, you can make a difference in your community and your country and serve as a role model for others.”

The clinic will take place at the Fort Dupont Ice Arena, 3779 Ely Place, SE, Washington, DC, at 1:30 p.m., Thursday. The arena is the only public indoor ice arena located in the nation’s capital, and the only skating facility in the area that provides free or subsidized skating and hockey programs to children.

The Penguin stars scheduled to be on hand for the clinic are Captain Sidney Crosby, Marc-Andre Fleury, Bill Guerin, Evgeni Malkin, Brooks Orpik, and Jordan Staal. The clinic is part of the NHL’s the Biggest Assist Happens Off the Ice campaign, in which NHL and its players continue hockey’s long tradition of addressing important social issues in North America and around the world. NHL players have volunteered more than 600,000 hours in the community and, along with their teams, have donated more than $215 million to charity. In addition, the NHL Players Association’s Goals and Dreams Fund and NHL’s Hockey is for Everyone initiative provide support for grassroots hockey globally, while the Hockey Fights Cancer program continues to raise funds for cancer care and research to help find a cure for the disease.

United We Serve is President Obama's call to service challenging all Americans to engage in sustained, meaningful community service. United We Serve initially runs from June 22 through a new National Day of Service on September 11, but will grow into a sustained, collaborative and focused effort to promote service as a way of life for all Americans. United We Serve is led by the Corporation for National and Community Service. For more information, visit Serve.gov.

The Corporation for National and Community Service is a federal agency that improves lives, strengthens communities, and fosters civic engagement through service and volunteering. Each year, the Corporation engages four million Americans of all ages and backgrounds through its Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America programs. For more information, visit NationalService.gov.